Customs duties from the UK to US?

[Russel]

Does anyone have any experience with customs duties when ordering online? I’m in the US and placed two orders for the UK over that last few months. Coincidentally, both cleared customs today (at different locations with different carriers), and I was surprised to get two very pricey customs bills. One shipment was clothing and the other was a simple gold band. To keep it jewelry related, the band cost $900 and the customs fee was $150. Is this normal? The bill contains no info beyond the fee and surcharge. I’ve tried googling, but had no real luck. Any info appreciated!

 

[JPie]

Who was the shipper? The fee may not only be for duties owed, but sometimes the shipping company will also charge you processing fees for getting the shipment through customs.

 

[Russel]

UPS. $12 is listed a brokerage fee and $142 as government charge.

 

[JPie]

That does seem rather high for duties. What was the declared value on the ring?

 

[Russel]

I haven’t seen any paperwork, but I purchased it from a retail site and paid $900– I can’t imagine it would have a declared value that was higher than what I paid? It just seems like a lot it extra money with no explanation!

 

[JPie]

I haven’t seen any paperwork, but I purchased it from a retail site and paid $900– I can’t imagine it would have a declared value that was higher than what I paid? It just seems like a lot it extra money with no explanation!

Yeah, sorry, but I’m stumped too! I hope you can get to the bottom of this.

 

[Russel]

An update in case anyone runs into a similar situation: It was incredibly difficult to receive information on this from UPS. They would not provide an explanation of fees until the package is delivered. They will not deliver the package until fees are paid. The package was stalled in the UK for unknown reasons. After it arrived, I requested an explanation of fees. The declared value was more than I paid. UPS told me I had to take this up with the shipper. I requested a copy of customs documentation from UPS.

The shipper had declared the proper value, but UPS had used a higher declared value to calculate the fees. The only remedy to this situation is to email a special department of UPS. I did this over a month ago and have not received a reply.